In July 2023, the App Store offered more than one million game apps. In contrast, the store had 3.83 million non-gaming apps available during the same period. During the third quarter of 2022, the number of mobile applications in the Apple App Store decreased by almost 25 percent compared to the previous quarter.
Apple App Store
The Apple App Store opened on July 10, 2008 via an update to iTunes. This coincided with Apple’s launch of the second generation iPhone 3G which supported mobile applications. Apps in the App Store are only available for iOS devices—the technology industry often refers to Apple’s ecosystem of devices and operating systems as a “walled garden.”
Leading iOS categories
As of 2022, the most popular Apple App Store category was game with over 13.66 percent of apps being games. The second most popular app category was business, followed by educational and lifestyle apps. Mobile gaming apps typically generate most of their revenue from advertising and in-app purchases, with just over a third of games paid for by download. Popular gaming apps in the App Store include Clash Royale, Candy Crush Saga, casino games, and Clash of Clans, currently the most successful iOS game.